AT&T can complete its massive merger with Time Warner, judge rules

In what could be one of the most consequential antitrust decisions in recent memory, a judge has ruled that AT&T and Time Warner can merge, despite a lawsuit from the Justice Department arguing that the deal would be anti-competitive.

While the Justice Department could still appeal, the decision clears the way for a new telecom behemoth, combining AT&T’s paid-TV subscribers with Time Warner’s content, which includes HBO, CNN, and Warner Bros. The federal judge ruling on the case did not impose any conditions on the deal as part of the decision, handing AT&T a clear victory in the dispute, while delivering a major blow to the Justice Department’s antitrust enforcers and telegraphing a green light to other companies with similar merger…